Am1200 (2008)

Covent Garden’s 2003 production of The Magic Flute , designed by John F. Macfarlane, directed by David McVicar, and conducted by Sir Colin Davis, is magnificent from a strictly musical standpoint. More than that, it’s vastly entertaining. The comedic elements of the story integrate far more comfortably than is often the case with Schikaneder’s high-minded (if vague) theme of a quest for enlightenment, particularly in the second act. Visually, the production is a feast, yet it doesn’t distract from the music.

Covent Garden’s 2003 production of The Magic Flute , designed by John F. Macfarlane, directed by David McVicar, and conducted by Sir Colin Davis, is magnificent from a strictly musical standpoint. More than that, it’s vastly entertaining. The comedic elements of the story integrate far more comfortably than is often the case with Schikaneder’s high-minded (if vague) theme of a quest for enlightenment, particularly in the second act. Visually, the production is a feast, yet it doesn’t distract from the music.

In January of 2008, the Japanese Arcangelo label re-released all the albums by Swedish avant-proggers Samla Mammas Manna/Zamla Mammaz Manna originally issued between 1971 and 1980: 1971's Samla Mammas Manna featuring keyboardist Lars Hollmer, bassist Lars Krantz, drummer Hans Bruniusson, and percussionist Henrik "Bebben" Öberg; 1974's Måltid and 1975's Klossa Knapitatet, both recorded after the departure of Öberg and the addition of guitarist Coste Apetrea to the lineup; 1976's Snorungarnas Symfoni, written by Gregory Fitzpatrick and performed by the Måltid/Klossa Knapitatet lineup with guest appearances by trumpeter Kalle Eriksson and saxophonist Ulf Wallander; and 1978's Schlagerns Mystik/För Äldre Nybegynnare and 1980's Familjesprickor (Family Cracks), both recorded after guitarist Apetrea had been replaced by Eino Haapala…

Klaus Schulze and Australian singer Lisa Gerrard (formerly of Dead Can Dance) proved to be an appealing combination on their studio recording Farscape, and they also work well together on Rheingold: Live at the Loreley. This was recorded at the Night Of Prog Festival at Loreley in July of 2008. We get over 131 minutes of music.

It's fitting that singer Billie Holiday began the most celebrated part of her career with Columbia in 1933, when the country was in the throes of the depression, and ended it in 1942, when the world was gripped by war. Her anguished delivery fit in perfectly with the times. As she projected the torments of her life through music, she gave us an escape from our own troubles, by reminding us of how bad life could get. Regardless, Holiday's sublime Columbia recordings, which originally appeared on the Brunswick, Vocalion and Okeh labels, are among the true treasures of jazz. The complete recordings were released a few years ago in a mammoth box set. This four CD collection pares the material down considerably, although the producers have not just taken the cream of the crop…

Coil was initially established in London in 1983 as an experimental solo outlet for ex-Psychic TV member John Balance, and became a full-fledged experimental sonic manipulation unit a year later following the arrival of keyboardist / programmer Peter Christopherson (Sleazy), a founder of Psychic TV as well as a member of Throbbing Gristle. From a creative angle, the band has demonstrated and provided innovative schemas of composition and experimented various forms of ambient music, from industrial to ritual and droning, mainly based on tape machines, loops, sonic electronic machines and various instruments. The sound aesthetic is impregnated by very deep, richful, moving and disturbingly obsessive textures as in the now classic How to Destroy Angels (1992) and Musick To Play In The Dark (1999)…

The fourth volume in Verve's Verve Remixed series was a long time in coming considering how quickly the label spit out the first three. Nonetheless, it is a welcome addition to that shelf if remixes are your personal thang. This set concentrates, once more, on vocalists, and the array is rather startling on the surface, though it's sequenced beautifully. As with any of these packages some cuts work better than others, but there are some true highlights here. Marlena Shaw's reading of Ashford & Simpson's "California Soul" is given a killer treatment by Diplo and Mad Decent, keeping the entire thing rooted in its source material and stretching it with judiciously added bits of early funk, Ramsey Lewis-style soul-jazz, and hip-hop…